


Sides of a Coin

by DarknessAroundUs



Category: Riverdale (TV 2017)
Genre: Cheerleaders, Childhood Friends, Core Four, Cute Kids, F/M, Fluff, Northside, Pregnancy, Southside Serpent Betty Cooper, Southside Serpent Jughead Jones, blogger Betty Cooper, southside
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-11-14
Updated: 2018-11-14
Packaged: 2019-08-23 15:59:08
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,671
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16622015
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DarknessAroundUs/pseuds/DarknessAroundUs
Summary: Southside Betty befriends Northside Veronica. A core four friend meet cute. Oneshot with four parts.





	Sides of a Coin

**Author's Note:**

> Beta credit to [Redundantoxymorons ](https://archiveofourown.org/users/redundantoxymorons/pseuds/redundantoxymorons) \- who I am very thankful for. 
> 
> In this AU a lot has changed but the only important thing to note is that FP and Alice never had a romantic/sexual relationship.

1.

The summer his mother leaves for Chicago, Archie turns fourteen. He comes to think of it as the summer of boredom. He has lots of friends at school, but most are away at camp and the ones who are still around don’t live within walking distance.

He spends a lot of time playing video games, walking Vegas, and throwing a tennis ball against the wall of his room. He does odd jobs for his next door neighbors, the elderly McAlisters, and he mows the lawn once a week.

In August he grows so sick of his house, of Elm Street as a whole, that he volunteers to go to work with his dad. At least then they can go out to lunch at Pop’s together.

His father’s current job is renovating the penthouse apartment at the Pembrooke. Archie can’t actually help with the renovations, but it’s nice to hang out with his dad and the crew. He does snack runs for them and votes on what radio station to play.

On the third day Archie helps out, the family that is renovating the apartment, the Lodges, come to see how everything is progressing. Archie will forever remember seeing Veronica step into the apartment for the first time, pearls gleaming around her neck, legs beautifully revealed by a mini skirt.

She smiles at him that first day, but they don’t talk much till a week later, when Archie works up the courage to ask her out to Pop’s. She doesn’t seem excited by the prospect of burgers and fries, but the charm of Pop’s and the decadence of the milkshakes wins her over.

2.

Jughead has never not known Betty. One of his earliest memories is of seeing her in the window of her trailer through the window of his. She was dancing in a pair of Elmo pajamas. Most of his childhood memories involve her. There was the time they got caught trying to run away from home. Their weekly trip to the northside library on the bus. Eating hotdogs on the front porch of his trailer, or hers. Teaching Jellybean how to read.

It’s harder for Jughead to think of memories without her in them. Before high school, they were in the same class every year.

Sweet Pea and Toni always joked about them being a married couple. But the truth is, till they are fifteen, Jughead doesn’t think of Betty sexually or romantically at all. He’s just too used to her being around. He doesn’t have the perspective to think of her as a girl, as anything other than a part of his default “we”.

The summer they turn fifteen, Betty’s long-gone father sends a plane ticket in the mail and an offer for her to spend the summer in Indiana with his new family. Betty refuses, but that doesn’t stop Alice from driving her to the airport and waving her off.

Jughead had never used his phone much till then, or the video chatting feature on his laptop. That summer changed that.

It’s also the summer he joins the Serpents. Other than Betty, he’s the last of the Sunnyside kids to join. It feels inevitable and also not like a big deal. It’s what everyone does. He’s not a big fan of the tattoo, since Toni messed up a little while drawing it, and Betty jokes that the version she sees on the screen looks more like a garter snake than anything scary.

The main job of the junior Serpents turns out to be spying for blackmail purposes. It’s a job Jughead enjoys and one he’s good at. He might be the newest recruit, but he’s soon getting all the best jobs. He starts saving up for a bike of his own.

When Alice and Jughead pick up Betty from the airport, he sees her for the first time as the adult she is becoming. The minute Alice turns her head to look for Betty’s luggage Jughead kisses her. She kisses him back and an angry Alice breaks them apart.

“How long has this been going on?” Alice asks in the car, her fingers gripped tightly around the wheel.

“Twenty minutes.” Betty says with a wink. They’re both in the backseat, their hands entwined. No one is surprised by their relationship, outside of Jughead and Betty.

 

3.

Veronica’s cheering for the Bulldogs during halftime. Screaming her heart out seems to help settle the tension in her stomach that builds from watching Archie play. It’s their senior year and he’s captain now. He’s never been seriously injured, but they’ve both seen lots of boys hauled off in stretchers by now.

The routine over, she winks at Archie as she runs for the sideline. She’s heading towards the restroom when a tall blond with a perfect ponytail stops her in the hallway. “Can I ask you a few questions? I’m reporting for the Red & Black.” Veronica’s expression must convey her confusion because she clarifies “It’s Southside High’s student newspaper.”

“As long as I can pee first.”

The blond nods. “Of course. I’m Betty Cooper, by the way.”

“Veronica Lodge.”

Betty waits outside the restroom and when Veronica returns, Betty starts peppering her with questions.

“Why did you join the cheer squad?”

“Honestly? Because the uniforms were fun, and I liked the idea of being part of a group of girls. I’ve always wanted more female friends.”

Betty looks surprised by the answer. “How has that worked out?”

“Not very well. Everyone’s kind of catty– off the record, of course.”

Betty nodded seriously “I get it.”

The next time they run into each other is at Pop’s. Betty is a waitress and Veronica is waiting for a study partner who never shows. The diner is slow that night, so Betty becomes her defacto study partner between refilling coffee cups and bussing dirty dishes. 

This becomes a regular occurrence. Veronica finds herself for the first time in her life with a close female friend. One she can actually confide in. Sometimes Betty meets her at Pop’s as a fellow customer, and sometimes Veronica deliberately goes in during the slow, late-night hours so that she can catch up.

Occasionally Jughead will be there, but he always stays in a booth by himself writing. He always drops by her booth to say a few words but he always keeps it short, never disclosing much about himself.

Finally after five months of the girls being friends, with graduation fast approaching, Veronica drags Archie to one of her late night study sessions.

He and Betty don’t have much in common on paper, but they get along well. They have the same sense of humor and the sort of easy comradery that usually takes years to build.  
Two days later Veronica is out at a bar with Kevin Keller, letting off steam. She steps out to get some air and sees Jughead on the corner smoking a cigarette next to a familiar blond in a Serpent jacket.

A chill runs through her. Veronica reads the paper. She’s never read anything good about The Serpents, she assumes that’s for a reason. She ducks back into the bar before Betty can spot her.

When she tells Archie the update over the phone he laughs. “You know Betty, she’s a good person. Nothing can change that.”

She realizes that he is right. She brings it up with Betty next time they study. Betty shrugs. “It’s just part of where I grew up. It’s a rite of passage. Like having a sweet 16. I’ve never done anything illegal, outside of having a fake ID.”

Veronica nods and takes a sip of her milkshake. “And Jughead?”

“The same.”

“Is that why you’re going to college around here? Because you can’t leave the Serpents” Veronica asks. She’s always been curious. Betty has the grades and the extracurriculars to go to a better school, yet she’s going to the entirely mediocre local college.

“The Serpents don’t mind if we leave. Lots of others do. We’re staying because of the money. We don’t want to go into debt. If we stay here we can stay at home, I can keep my job,”

“I don’t think I could live with my parents one more year,” Veronica says with a sigh.

“When Jughead’s dad went to jail last year, I moved in with Juggie. I’ve been there ever since. My mom’s not happy about it, but she’s right next door.” Betty says with a shrug. It’s when Betty casually says things like this that Veronica realizes how entirely different their lives are. The idea of a parent going to jail is crazy to her. The idea of already having one’s own place to live (with one’s boyfriend no less) also seems absurd.

All four of them, the girls and their boyfriends, only hang out once before Archie and Veronica leave for College. It’s the 4th of July, and they go to the fair together. Veronica still thinks Jughead is weird, but he and Archie get along great. It turn out they have been playing the same online video game together for years, without knowing it.

Archie keeps awkwardly exclaiming “I just can’t believe you’re FP3!” at random moments throughout the day. Betty and Veronica start pelting him with popcorn when he does this.

4.

Betty’s in the supermarket, pushing the cart through the produce section in search of some decent bananas when suddenly someone shouts her name at a volume not appropriate for grocery stores at 7 in the morning.

Betty turns and there’s Veronica, still as stylish as ever. Betty knows of no one else who could get away with wearing designer heels at Publix in the AM (or even in the PM, frankly).

She hasn’t seen Veronica in almost a decade. When Veronica was still an undergrad, Betty would see her on summer vacation. They’d grab dinner at Pop’s or get drinks at a Northside cocktail bar. But as the years went on, Veronica spent less and less time in Riverdale, and they’d drifted apart.

Betty still thought fondly of V, but according to the postings she saw on Instagram, V had gone a very different route. Her life involved yachts and fancy watches, parties on private islands. For a while she was with Archie, then she wasn’t, and then she was again. Betty’s past decade had involved The Serpents, community college, Jughead, and building her own business– not in that order.

“V! It’s so good to see you!” Betty says, wrapping her old friend in a hug. That’s when she notices the bump. She feels it press against her. Betty is flushed with happiness and jealousy in the same moment. “What are you doing back?”

“Archie and I got married. We decided to move back to start a family. We’re just closing on a house down the street from here.” Betty knows the one, she drove past it to get to the store today.

“Congratulations on the baby to be!” Betty says.

“Thanks! What about you guys? You’re still with Jughead right?”

“Yeah, our eighth anniversary is tomorrow.”

“Wait, that can’t be right. You’ve been together much longer than that?” Veronica says.

“Our eighth wedding anniversary.” Betty clarifies.

They play catch-up. Veronica tells Betty about her job as a fashion consultant and Betty tells Veronica about how she started a popular baking blog. Her first cookbook is coming next year from Chronicle Books. When Veronica asks Betty about Jugheads' job she reluctantly answers, “He runs the Serpents now.”

It’s not ideal, not what either of them planned or wanted, but Tall Boy, the other person who wanted the position, would have steered the Serpents down a much darker path. Neither Betty nor Jughead felt like they had much choice.

Veronica and Betty talk for so long in the aisle that a bored retiree harrumphs at them. They quickly schedule a Pop’s date for the following week. They fall back into friendship easily, although there more often at each other’s houses than at Pop’s now.

Betty and Jughead have bought a small house on the edge of the southside, with a sprawling yard that Betty fills with flower and vegetable gardens. Veronica and Archie’s house can more accurately be described as a mansion.

The Joneses have the Andrews over for dinner on a regular basis. Jughead and Archie grow close. Jughead teaches Archie how to drive a motorcycle. They still spend most of their time playing video games – although as Veronica points out, that’s just till the baby comes.

Archie and Betty start going on runs together on weekend mornings, something both their partners are eager to opt out of.

Veronica still doesn’t like Jughead, though. He seems weird. Always stuck in his own head. Spry with language when he needs to be, but mostly silent. She can’t picture him running a motorcycle club. Leaders, in her experience, talk a lot more than he does in groups.

Betty tries to show Veronica the other side of Jughead, the one she sees so often, but it’s an uphill battle. Finally Betty gives up. At least three out of the four of them are good friends.

Then Veronica gives birth and declares Betty the godmother. It is a title that fills Betty’s heart with joy, and helps justify the amount of money she spent on elegant onesies for baby Mary.

Mary is adorable, but a terrible sleeper and one afternoon when Veronica is at her wits end she calls Betty over to help her grab a nap. Betty brings Jughead and when Veronica asks her why Betty raises her eyebrow and says “They don’t call him the baby whisperer for nothing.”

Mary is asleep within three minutes, and Veronica has already passed out by then. Jughead holds Mary on the sofa, one arm around the baby and one arm around Betty.

“I want this so bad,” Betty whispers.

“Let’s try IVF,” Jughead says, pressing his lips to her forehead. They have money saved. Neither of them are big spenders. But it’s emergency money, it’s set aside for potential legal fees or other possible disasters.

“Are you sure?” Betty asks, imagining their own child in Jughead’s arms. They’ve been trying on their own for five years now, so if it was going to happen naturally, it would have already.

“A hundred percent,” Jughead says.

When Veronica comes downstairs, all three of them are asleep on the couch. Veronica starts to think of Jughead as a friend. Occasionally when Betty is busy and Veronica’s fighting a work deadline, he takes Mary out on long walks on his own.

Jughead is the one who ends up telling Veronica that he and Betty are trying to start a family of their own. It’s Betty who announces her pregnancy the night before Mary’s first birthday. Betty’s swimming in joy and, unfortunately, other pregnancy induced hormones.

Betty gives birth to Thea in an accidentally-at-home birth the next summer (all the baby books warned Betty she’d be in labor for up to 18 hours, which was not the case). Jughead steps down from the Serpents, it was both harder and easier than he expected.

Mary leads the way always, she is a year and a half older after all, but Thea’s at her side as soon as she learns how to walk. When Veronica and Archie have a second child, Adam, three years later, both girls take him under their wing, describing him as “our baby”.

As the years pass, the children and the adults walk in and out of each-others houses as easily as they do their own homes. They go on vacations together, from fancy Lodge-sponsored trips to Hawaii to low key camping in state parks. Christmas becomes a weekend at the Andrews, and Easter is always a hunt through the Jones’s carefully maintained garden.

Betty and Jughead had a whole life together before they met Veronica and Archie, but when they are 50 and all clapping at Mary’s graduation from Sarah Lawrence, it is hard for them to remember it.

**Author's Note:**

> I am always grateful for comments. You can follow me on [Tumblr](https://www.tumblr.com/blog/darknessaroundus) here.


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